Rotary type distributor



March 25, 1969 M. A. WEBSTER 3,435,161

ROTARY TYPE DI STR IBU'IOR Filed May 8, 1967 Sheet of 2 F I G. I i

I 5 2|X 3' 3 38a 23 7 I9 55 3 2| 45 u 5 .0 F L j 3 3 FIG. 2

INVENTOR M/LLARD A WEBST R WM? A 0 ey V March 25 1969 WEBSTER 3,435,161

ROTARY TYPE DISTRIBUTOR Filed May a, 1967 Sheet 2 of 2 I/V VE/VTOR M/LLARD A. WEBSTER Horney United States Patent US. Cl. 200-26 12 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This distributor operates completely on the rotary principle. A spring loaded contact button or ball in the plastic distributor cap has sliding contact with uniformly spaced arcuate metal segments lying fiush with the smooth cylindrical surface of a plastic rotor for the primary circuit connection. Similarly, a lightly spring loaded elongated flat contact slidably mounted for radial movement relative to the top of the rotor has an arcuately shaped wider outer end disposed in sliding contact on the cylindrical inner surface of the plastic cap to make contact with one after another of uniformly spaced arcuate metallic segments that lie flush with the cylindrical interior of the cap for the secondary circuit connection, the high-voltage current being delivered to this fiat radially disposed contact by another spring loaded contact button or ball mounted vertically in the center of the top of the distributor cap on the axis of the rotor and bearing downwardly with light constant spring pressure on the flat top surface of the aforesaid radially disposed contact. A vacuum operated spark advance unit incorporated in the cap shifts the primary circuit contact ball relative to the cap and rotor to retard the spark automatically in response to drop in pressure in the intake manifold of the engine.

This invention relates to an improved distributor for spark ignition of internal combustion engines.

The principal object of my invention is to provide, in lieu of the conventional distributor with the oscillator type breaker arm, one operating completely on the rotary principle, with a view to quicker starting, better acceleration, smoother running, better mileage per gallon of gasoline, and various other side benefits, not to mention the longer life of the improved distributor itself due to its rotary operation with reduced arcing and pitting. The improved distributor, insofar as its use onmodern cars is concerned, is furthermore better adapted to the firing requirements of the modern higher speed engines, and modern driving conditions where cars are driven continuously at high speeds for hours at a time.

In accordance with my invention, the primary circuit connection is effected by sliding contact between a spring loaded contact button or ball in the distributor cap with uniformly spaced arcuate metal segments lying flush with the smooth cylindrical external surface of a plastic rotor, and it should be obvious that, as compared with the old movable breaker points, this new construction will give improved performance by reason of minimizing arcing and consequent erosion and oxidation, and, inasmuch as the spring which urges the ball into contact with the rotor maintains uniform pressure 'without ever changing its flexing, longer life is assured. Similarly, a lightly spring loaded high voltage elongated contact slidably mounted for radial movement relative to the top of the rotor has an arcuately shaped wider outer end sliding on the cylindrical inner surface of the plastic cap to make contact in the same way as the aforementioned spring loaded contact button or ball to complete the secondary high voltage circuit connection with the spark plugs as the contact head comes into engagement with one after another of the 3,435,161 Patented Mar. 25, 1969 uniformly spaced arcuate metallic segments that lie flush with the cylindrical interior of the plastic cap, and, here again, the spring urging the contact outwardly exerts uniform light pressure without change in flexing of the spring so that long life is assured. The high voltage secondary current is delivered to the last mentioned contact 'by another spring loaded contact button or ball mounted vertically in the center of the top wall of the plastic distributor cap on the axis of the rotor and bearing downwardly with light constant spring pressure on the flat top surface of the radially disposed contact. Hence, the present construction assures perfect control over the primary current dwell time, which requires exact control of the time during which there is a contact permitting primary current flow, as distinguished from the performance of a conventional distributor where the erosion of points and wearing of a rubbing block combined with weakened spring action all together tend to create uneven dwell time, whereas here the primary contact ball has continuous contact with each of the rotor segments a predetermined length of time, according to their specific length dimensions, as they rotate past the spring loaded ball, and it goes without saying that the desired high voltage build-up in the secondary circuit is completely dependent on such uniform good operation in the primary circuit while a good spark and dependable firing in each cylinder is likewise completely dependent on similar good operation in the secondary circuit.

Another feature is the interchangeability of the present rotor and cap with the conventional distributor rotor point mounting plate and cap, thus enabling a purchaser to make the installation himself with an appreciable saving. The conventional centrifugal spark mechanism is retained in its entirety in the distributor base, so, in converting to the present invention, one need only remove the conventional cap and rotor and point mounting plate and substitute the new rotor and cap. The conventional vacuum advance unit is also removed in order to enable utilizing my improved new type of vacuum advance unit which is incorporated on the new cap.

The improved vacuum advance unit avoids the problems of age deterioration and diaphragm rupture in the event of backfire, inherent in the old devices, and comprises a cylinder in fixed relation to the cap having a piston slidable in the open end thereof and connected through that end by means of a link with the primary circuit contact ball to slide it relative to the cap and rotor, the piston being movable against a return spring in response to drop in pressure in the intake manifold.

In the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a distributor made in accordance with my invention, portions of the twopart cap being cut away for purposes of better illustration and likewise an intermediate portion of the front one of the two cap hold-down spring clips;

FLIG. 2 is a vertical section through the distributor;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3--3 of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4 and 5 are other horizontal sections on the correspondingly numbered lines of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged vertical sectional detail on the line 6-6 of FIG. 4; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the rotor.

The same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts throughout these views.

Referring first mainly to FIGS. 1 and 2, the distributor of my invention is indicated generally by the reference numeral 10 and is shown as carried on a conventional distributor base 1. The lower cap section 5 is clamped to the base 1 by a pair of diametrically opposed conventional spring clips 9, which snap into recesses 11 provided therefor on opposite sides of the lower cap section 5. The distributor shaft 3a, which is driven off the cam shaft of the engine at one-half engine speed in a 4-cycle internal combustion engine, extends upwardly through the tubular portion 3' of the distributor base 1, as seen in FIG. 2, to provide by its upper section 3 the drive for the rotor 25 that operates inside the lower cap section 5 in concentric relation thereto. The two cap sections '5 and 7, both of plastic or other insulating material, like the rotor 25, are fastened together by a pair of diametrically o'pposed screws 23. Mating half-round grooves 19 inthe upper and lower cap sections accommodate the high tension wires 21, of which there are seven, six being connected to the six spark plugs of a -6-cylinder engine and the seventh being the high tension lead to the distributor from the spark coil in the usual way, its channel being designated by the letter x in FIG. 5, this being the one leading to the center of the top of the cap. The vacuum advance unit cylinder 13 is molded integral with the lower cap section 5. A .piston 15 reciprocable in the cylinder 13 has a link connection 49 with a radius arm 47 on an arcuate mounting plate 41 reciprocable in the arcuately relieved portion 39 of the lower cap section 5. A bore is drilled in the same boss with cylinder 13' above the latter to accommodate a condenser 17, as seen in FIG. 1. The distributor of my invention is mainly concerned with the caps 57 and rotor 25, and, secondarily, with the vacuum advance unit 13 just mentioned. Rotor 25 is molded of plastic material to cylindrical form with the arcuate metal conducting segments 27, which lie flush with the cylindrical surface of the rotor and are arranged to become successively engaged with the lightly spring pressed contact ball 29, which is retained in the tube 43, fixed to and moving with the aforementioned arcuate plate 41, and slidable in a slot 45 defined in the boss 45' provided on the inside of the lower cap section 5. A high tension elongated generally rectangular flat contact 35, which is of dove-tail cross-section, as seen in FIG. 6, to be guided in the dove-tail groove 37 for reciprocation radially relative to the rotor 25, has a widened arcuately formed outer end portion 31, as seen in FIG. 4, for sliding engagement with one after another of the high tension terminals 33 that are disposed in evenly circumferentially spaced relation in the upper portion of the lower cap section 5 flush with the cylindrical interior thereof.

Referring more particularly to FIG. 2, the rotor 25 is shown as keyed to the upper shaft section 3 at k by means of the central sleeve 51 that is integral with, and has the contact segments 27 radiating therefrom as spokes, so that as the segments 27 come into contact with the ball 29, one after another, the primary circuit to the ground is completed allowing current flow through the primary of the spark coil to build up the voltage in the secondary for the spark. The shaft section 3 is oscillatable relative to the lower shaft section 3a and connected to the latter as indicated at a in FIG. 2 in the base 1 by a tfly-weight mechanism, which, when the weights move outwardly under centrifugal force, effects spark advance automatically purely in relation to engine speed, as distinguished from the vacuum advance or retard effected by piston 15 in response to change in pressure in the intake manifold, where the timing correction is made automatically to avoid engine knock, as indicated by the double ended arrow to the left in FIG. 3 marked A for advance and R for retard in relation to the rotor 25 indicated as turning in a counter-clockwise direction.

The high tension contact segments or terminals 33 have their leads 21 extending thereto from the spark plugs of the engine and the high tension lead 21x extends from the spark coil to the central contact 38, all of these leads being connected with the distributor cap by the sharply pointed spikes 55, which extend from the segments 3'3 and contact 38 vertically upwardly through the top wall 'of the lower cap section in the half-round grooves 19 so that they pierce through the insulation covering of the leads to make good connection with the wires therein when the top piece 7 is pressed downwardly over the leads and firmly fastened in place by means of the screws 23. The spike 55 numbered 55x in FIG. 5 at the center of the cap is the one connecting the coil lead 21x with the lightly spring pressed contact button 38 seen in FIG. 2 for high voltage transfer to the radially disposed contact 35 on the top of the rotor. Obviously the spikes 5-5 and 55x, besides completing good electrical connections positively prevent pulling out of any of the leads 21 and 212: from the distributor cap.

Referring to FIG. 3, contact ball 29, shown as bearing on the cylindrical periphery of the rotor 25, is retained in the end of a metal tube 43 by swedging inwardly the outer end, as at 63, slightly beyond the annular guide flange 61. The coiled compression spring 59 housed in the tube 43 maintains constant pressure on the ball 29 keeping it lightly engaged with the cylindrical periphery of rotor 25. A screw 64 on the outer end of the tube 43 receives nuts 65 for fastening the tube rigidly to the plate 41. A pin 67 pivotally connects the radius arm 47 of plate 41 with one end of the link 49, the other end being connected by means of another pin 69 to the ears 71 provided on the back of the piston 15. A coiled compression spring 73 provides spark retard as it urges the piston 15 rearwardly away from the cap 75 on the closed end of the cylinder 13, while a tube 77 extends from the cylinder to the intake manifold so that the piston 15 moves in the other direction for spark advance in response to drop in manifold pressure, the spark being retarded as the ball contact 29 is moved in a clockwise direction relative to the rotor 25, which turns in a counter-clockwise direction as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 3.

Referring to FIG. 4, transfer of high voltage current from the spark coil to the spark plug leads 21 is accomplished as indicated before by slidable engagement of the outer end of radially disposed flat contact 35 with the segments 33, as the arcuate head end 31 of the contact 35 slidably engages these segments under the light spring pressure of its coiled compression spring 87 caged behind the contact 35 in the inner end of the groove 37 hearing against the inner end wall 89 of said groove. A screw threaded in rotor 25 and entered freely in a slot 83 extending lengthwise of the contact 35 retains the contact in assembled relation to the rotor when the latter is removed from the distributor, but it is obvious that there is no movement of the contact endwise of the groove during normal operation of the distributor. Obviously, the spring '87 can be extremely light inasmuch as contact 35 will, of course, be urged outwardly under centrifugal force also in the rotation of the rotor. The arcuate head end 31 of contact 35 rides smoothly off each segment 33 onto the cylindrical inner surface 79 of the cap section 5 which is flush with the inner surfaces of the segments 33. The top of the rotor 25 is relieved behind the head end 31 of the contact as indicated at 81 so that the contact 35 is also movable radially inwardly against the act-ion of the spring 87.

In operation, FIG. 3 shows the parts in a middle running position with spark half-way advanced. At start, contact 29 is in fully retarded position. In FIG. 1, the battery B and spark coils primary winding P and secondary winding S are shown diagrammatically, the primary winding P being connected at one end in series with the battery and contact 29, and the latter having the con denser 17 also connected therewith as seen at 17'. One end of the secondary winding S is connected through lead 21x with the central vertical contact 38. The other ends of the windings P and S are grounded, and, of course, the leads 21 are grounded through the spark plugs. Segments 27 are lined up vertically with segments 33, as best seen in FIG. 2, so that as current flows through the primary winding P a predetermined interval or dwell time as a segment 27 is engaged by contact 29, high voltage current is induced in the secondary winding S and a spark is accordingly delivered to whichever plug is connected with the segment 33 vertically aligned with the segment 27 just mentioned. Perfect correlation is assured by the same rotary operation at both primary and secondary levels. Therefore, the present distributor gives quicker starting, better acceleration, smoother running, better mileage per gallon of gasoline, and various other side benefits, aside from longer life of the unit itself due to its rotary operation resulting in reduced arcing and pitting. This distributor, due to its rotary operation, is far better adapted to the firing requirements of modern high speed engines and better adapted to modern driving conditions where cars are driven continuously at high speed for hours at a time. Obviously, since there is no variation in the flexing of the spring 59 for the primary circuit contact 29, nor any change in flexing of spring 87 for the secondary circuit contact 35, and likewise none for spring 38a cooperating with central vertical contact 38 riding on the radial contact 35, constant pressure is assured at all three of these critical contact points, and there is no reason to expect any fatigue in either of these springs resulting in loss of pressure on the contacts, interfering with proper functioning of the distributor and necessitating replacement of springs, but, what is even more important, the present construction insures uniformity of engagement of contacts 35 and 29 with segments 33 and 27 at the upper and lower levels of the distributor, respectively, for exactly the same predetermined length of time in respect to each of these segments, according to their specific length dimensions, as the segments 27 rotate past the spring loaded ball 29 and as contact 35 rotates past the segments 33, assuring, in the first instance, the desired high voltage build-up in the secondary circuit, upon which a good spark and dependable firing in each cylinder depends, and, assuring in the second instance, full discharge of the high voltage current to each and every plug to a uniform degree each and every time, regardless of the speed of the engine. The improved vacuum advance unit at 13 avoids the problems of age deterioration, and also diaphragm rupture in the event of hack-fire, both objections inherent in the old constructions.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of the objects and advantages of my invention. The appended claims have been drawn to cover all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. In a distributor comprising a stationary housing of insulation material and hollow generally cylindrical form, and a rotor of insulation material and generally cylindrical form disposed in said housing in concentric relationship thereto, the improvement which comprises a plurality of arcuate metallic contact segments carried on the rotor in evenly circumferentially spaced relation in and flush with the periphery of said rotor as part of the primary circuit for a spark coil, a spring pressed metallic contact carried on the wall of said housing in insulated relationship thereto and bearing radially inwardly on the periphcry of said rotor to have sliding engagement with and ground said contact segments at regular intervals for predetermined dwells, the length of each of which is determined by the circumferential dimension of each of said segments, said housing having a top Wall in spaced relation to the top of said rotor and carrying a spring pressed metallic vertical contact in insulated relationship to said housing and on the axis of rotation of said rotor and bearing downwardly toward said rotor, an elongated spring pressed flat metallic contact guided for movement radially outwardly relative to the top of said rotor and having said last mentioned vertical contact bearing on top of its inner end portion, and a plurality of arcuate metallic contact segments arranged to be slidably engaged by the outer end of said elongated contact and carried on the housing in evenly circumferentially spaced relation in and flush with the inner periphery of said housing as part of the secondary circuit of the spark coil, whereby high voltage sparks are delivered from the spark coil to spark plugs connected with the last named contact segments as one after another of the last named contact segments are slidably engaged by the outer end of the elongated contact.

2. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the elongated contact has a widened outer end portion having an outer edge struck on an arc of smaller radius than that of said rotor and housing, the center of which is located on the center line of and intermediate the ends of said elongated contact.

3. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the elongated contact has a widened outer end portion having an outer edge struck on an arc of smaller radius than that of said rotor and housing, the center of which is located on the center line of and intermediate the ends of said elongated contact, the outer end of said groove being widened for operating clearance for the widened outer end of said contact.

4. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the elongated contact is of dovetail shaped cross-section and is slidable in a dovetail shaped groove provided therefor in the top of said rotor.

5. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the elongated contact has a widened outer end portion having an outer edge struck on an arc of smaller radius than that of said rotor and housing, the center of which is located on the center line of and intermediate the ends of said elongated contact, there being means limiting outward movement of said contact relative to said groove.

6. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the elongated contact is of dovetail shaped cross-section and is slidable in a dovetail shaped groove provided therefor in the top of said rotor, the groove extending inwardly in said rotor beyond the inner end of said contact, and there being a compression spring bearing against the inner end of said contact and caged in said groove between the contact and the inner end of said groove.

7. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first mentioned spring pressed metallic contact carried on the wall of said housing is slidably guided on said wall for movement relative to said rotor in an arc concentric with the rotor, and means for shifting said contact to advance or retard the spark.

8. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first mentioned spring pressed metallic contact carried on the wall of said housing is slidably guided on said wall for movement relative to said rotor in an arc concentric with the rotor, there being an arcuate slot provided in said wall concentric with said rotor and an arcuate boss on the wall concentric with the slot and providing a radial enlargement of said slot therein, the contact being of elongated metallic tubular form disposed radially in said radially enlarged slot as a guide and containing a coiled compression spring caged between the outer end of said tube and a contact ball retained in the inner end of said tube, and means mechanically connected to the outer end of said tube for shifting the contact ball to advance or retard the spark, the outer end of said tube also being adapted to have electrical connections thereon for the primary circuit.

9. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first mentioned spring pressed metallic contact carried on the wall of said housing is slidably guided on said wall for movement relative to said rotor in an arc concentric with the rotor, and means operable in response to change in pressure in the intake manifold of an internal combustion engine for shifting said contact.

10. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein said first mentioned spring pressed metallic contact carried on the wall of said housing is slidably guided on said wall for movement relative to said rotor in an arc concentric with the rotor, there being an arcuate slot provided in said wall concentric with said rotor and an arcuate boss on the wall concentric with the slot and providing a radial enlargement of said slot therein, the contact being of elongated metallic tubular form disposed radially in said radially enlarged slot as a guide and containing a coiled compression spring caged between the outer end of said tube and a contact ball retained in the inner end of said tube, and means mechanically connected to the outer end of said tube for shifting the contact ball to advance or retard the spark, the outer end of said tube also being adapted to have electrical connections thereon for the primary circuit, said means comprising a cylinder in rigid relation to said housing having a piston reciprocable therein and connected with said contact and movable in one direction for spark retard in response to drop in pressure in the manifold, and spring means for moving the piston the other way.

11. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the top wall of said housing is split to define upper and lower sections in the abutting faces of which there are registering half cylindrical grooves adapted to receive insulation covered wires for spark plug leads, vertical spikes in the lower wall section, one connected with each of the last mentioned contact segments, said spikes penetrating the insulation of said insulation covered wires and contacting the wires therein, and means for fastening the upper and lower sections of said top wall together holding the insulation covered wires in said grooves and connected onto said spikes and preventing withdrawal of said wires from said grooves.

12. A distributor as set forth in claim 1 wherein the top wall of said housing is split to define upper and lower sections in the abutting faces of which there are registering half cylindrical grooves adapted to receive insulation covered wires for spark plug leads, vertical spikes in the lower wall section, one connected with each of the last mentioned contact segments, said spikes penetrating the insulation of said insulation covered wires and contacting the Wires therein, and means for fastening the upper and lower sections of said top wall together holding the insulation covered wires in said grooves and connected onto said spikes and preventing withdrawal of said wires from. said grooves extending from the center of said wall adapted to receive an insulation covered wire for the leadin wire from a spark coil, a vertical spike in the lower wall section connected with the vertical contact, said spike penetrating the insulation of said insulation covered wire and contacting the Wire therein, and means for fastening the upper and lower sections of said top wall together holding the insulation covered Wire in said grooves and connected onto said spike and preventing withdrawal of said wire from said groove.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,204,730 11/ 1916 Baier 200-22 2,174,081 9/1939 Fitzsimrnons 20019 2,187,070 1/1940 Arthur ZOO-31 2,443,046 6/1948 Mansen 20019 ROBERT K. SCHAEFER, Primary Examiner.

H. BURKS, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 200--31 

